Almost every report on the 2012 Fiat 500 cites BMW's Mini and its highly successful rebirth as a boutique go-kart. While the reborn Cinquecento carries similar luster—European roots, a distant heritage that includes some racing lore, a cuteness factor usually reserved for babies and furry animals--Fiat's four-seat hipster is hardly the mechanical tour de force that makes Mini such a winner.

That's not to say the car is a dud to drive. In the run-up to the 500's debut in February in U.S. showrooms, we enjoyed test drives from the winding back roads of New York's Hudson Valley to the hills and valleys surrounding San Diego in Southern California. While that's enough sampling to say definitively that the 500 is no Mini when it comes to carving up corners, the car does corner the market on other redeeming factors.

Pricing, for instance, starts at $16,000 for a well-equipped car, undercutting the Mini by about $4,000 and putting it up against other similarly equipped small entries such as the Ford Fiesta and the Nissan Juke. Content is solid, with seven airbags, active head restraints, antilock brakes, stability control and tire-pressure monitors all standard.

The ride is surprisingly compliant for an inexpensive small car, soaking up bumps without much harshness, and the car is well insulated from road noise. The one we get in the States is built at a Chrysler plant in Mexico and has more sound insulation than the European model, something that will be incorporated into the cars on the Continent. The U.S. version weighs about 80 pounds more than the European 500, a result, in part, of the extra insulation, a more robust subframe and things such as satellite radio and bigger seats.

The suspension keeps the standard 15-inch or optional 16-inch tires planted in hard cornering. The steering can be a little too light in normal driving mode, but when you flick the dash-mounted sport-mode switch, it tightens the steering feel while improving throttle response and transmission mapping (on automatic models). The brakes are excellent, and overall, the car feels reasonably spry and is fun to drive.

The 500 coming to the States is powered by a Dundee, Mich.-built 1.4-liter, 101-hp, 98-lb-ft inline-four-cylinder gasoline engine with Fiat's MultiAir--the first U.S. application of a technology that independently manages intake and exhaust valves. A hydraulic system operates the intake valves for a more precise amount of air allowed into the combustion chamber. The management helps return 30 mpg in the city and 38 mpg on the highway for the manual model, while the automatic returns 27 mpg city and 34 mpg highway. The engine pulls well for such a small-displacement mill, without a lot of collateral racket and without the aid of a turbocharger. Extra boost will come early in 2012, when Fiat brings us the 148-hp Abarth performance edition now enjoyed by enthusiasts in Europe. A battery-electric model will follow by the end of 2012.

The car debuts in three trims: the base Pop ($15,500 plus a $500 destination fee; note all the “500” numbers), the tauter Sport ($17,500) and the Lounge ($19,500), which has a full glass roof and more chrome trim. Both the Pop and the Sport come with five-speed manual transmissions standard. The more leisurely Lounge runs a six-speed automatic that is also available in the Sport. The car launches in coupe form, with a convertible arriving before summer.

The 500 relaunches Fiat in the States after a 27-year absence. So far, 130 Chrysler dealers in 36 states have qualified to have Fiat “studios,” many of which are going into shuttered Saturn and Hummer stores, according to Laura Soave, head of the Fiat brand in the United States. She said the company realizes that the small car will not appeal to customers all across the country. “There are some places where people just don't want to drive a small car,” she said. “So we're concentrating on areas where we think the market will be strong.”

Soave said that Fiat is not targeting a specific demographic; instead, the car's broad appeal should draw customers young and old but primarily those in urban areas. Going forward, Fiat will become Chrysler's small-car brand, much the way Ram is the truck brand and Dodge is the performance brand.

The plant in Mexico can build 100,000 cars annually, with half slated for North America and the other half heading to South America, primarily Brazil. The concessions made for the U.S. market--a quieter cabin, larger seats, cup-holders big enough to swallow Big Gulps, not to mention a six-speed automatic transmission not available elsewhere--should all help make the reborn 500 a success here, just as it has been in other markets. To date, Fiat has sold 500,000 of the 500s in 80 countries.

As with the Mini, the 500's tiny-tot styling draws attention and smiles at every turn. While it might take a bit longer to get to those turns and through them than in a Mini, you will be doing so with Italian style, and that's one thing the Mini can't deliver.